Commemorating Covid-19

AN elder at Hamilton Bardrainney Church, Port Glasgow, David McLellan has designed an intricate stained-glass panel for the church that will allow the congregation to commemorate the hundreds of local people who passed away or suffered during the pandemic.

Port Glasgow is in Inverclyde, which at one stage was described as ‘the Covid-19 capital of Scotland’, and many members of the church family have lost family and friends.

The panel, which features a dove of peace and the verse ‘my peace I give you’ from John 14, was installed and dedicated last summer.

And in Cramond, Edinburgh, local children helped to plant a tree of remembrance as a living memorial to all that’s been lost in the Cramond area through Covid-19.

Over the next year, local organisations will plant more trees and bulbs as focal points for remembrance, in an initiative called Cramond Commemorates.

The first tree –a Sessile oak – was planted outside Cramond Kirk Halls.

As the project rolls out, it’s hoped to involve more families, individuals, and community groups, as well as Cramond Kirk and local schools, in providing trees and bulbs for public spaces and gardens in the area.

“Covid-19 has inflicted pain and loss on many through illness and death.

And social isolation and restrictions have taken their toll on people of all a ges,” said Stuart Richardson, chair of the Cramond Commemorates project.

Main: Local children plant tree at Cramond Kirk Top right: Commemoration stained-glass window

“It’s important to have somewhere to go, where people can reflect, remember, grieve, or celebrate a loved one’s life.

“Hopefully they will find solace in the act of planting beautiful living memorials in Cramond, Barnton and Cammo.”